From Cakes to Robots, Icing to Steel
This week's guest blog is courtesy of NERC Advisory Member AMP Robotics.
By Maria Van Dyke, Production Team Lead
In January 2019, my husband, Ben, started a job as a robot operations engineer at a relatively new company called AMP Robotics in Louisville, Colorado, about 25 miles from our home in the Denver metro area. AMP makes robotics systems enabled by artificial intelligence to automate the identification and sorting of recyclable materials. The company was growing quickly to meet demand, and Ben was part of a team responsible for assembling units to get them ready to ship to customers. The quick pace of things didn’t bother him; he enjoyed the work. Our son, Luke, and I would drive up to meet him when he was able to break for dinner; then he’d put in a few more hours before finishing for the day. I was a cake decorator at a local Target bakery at the time, and my 
early-morning shifts complemented his long days; I could be around to handle…